ReviewGastroenterology research and practice2014
Does Preoperative Radio(chemo)therapy Increase Anastomotic Leakage in Rectal Cancer Surgery? A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Review in Gastroenterology research and practice, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Risk and protective factors for postoperative anastomotic leakage in esophageal and gastrointestinal surgery: an umbrella review of meta-analyses and systematic reviews.International journal of surgery (London, England) · 2026Pooled it
- Prophylactic transanal decompression tube versus non-prophylactic transanal decompression tube for anastomotic leakage prevention in low anterior resection for rectal cancer: a meta-analysis.Surgical endoscopy · 2017Pooled it
- The effect of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy on perioperative outcomes in rectal cancer patients following stoma reversal-a retrospective cohort analysis.Journal of gastrointestinal oncology · 2025Article
- Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer: a propensity-score-matched analysis combined with SEER validation.Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology · 2023Article
- Predictive Factors for Anastomotic Leakage Following Colorectal Cancer Surgery: Where Are We and Where Are We Going?Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2023Review
- Updates of Risk Factors for Anastomotic Leakage after Colorectal Surgery.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
- Diagnosis of Anastomotic Leak.Clinics in colon and rectal surgery · 2021Review
- Tailored treatment of anastomotic leak after rectal cancer surgery according to the presence of a diverting stoma.Annals of surgical treatment and research · 2020Article
- Prediction model for anastomotic leakage after laparoscopic rectal cancer resection.The Journal of international medical research · 2020Article
- Late anastomotic leakage after anal sphincter saving surgery for rectal cancer: is it different from early anastomotic leakage?International journal of colorectal disease · 2020Article
- Radiation-induced injury on surgical margins: a clue to anastomotic leakage after rectal-cancer resection with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy?Gastroenterology report · 2019Article
- Laparoscopic surgery may decrease the risk of clinical anastomotic leakage and a nomogram to predict anastomotic leakage after anterior resection for rectal cancer.International journal of colorectal disease · 2019Article
- Changes in Clinical Practice Reduce the Rate of Anastomotic Leakage After Colorectal Resections.World journal of surgery · 2018Article
- Surgeon perspectives on the use and effects of neoadjuvant chemoradiation in the treatment of rectal cancer: a comprehensive review of the literature.Langenbeck's archives of surgery · 2015Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objective. Preoperative radio(chemo)therapy (pR(C)T) appears to increase postoperative complications of rectal cancer resection, but clinical trials have reported conflicting results. The objective of this meta-analysis was performed to assess the effects of pR(C)T on anastomotic leak after rectal cancer resection. Methods. PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library were searched from January 1980 to January 2014. Randomized controlled trials included all original articles reporting anastomotic leak in patients with rectal cancer, among whom some received preoperative radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy while others did not. The analysed end-points were the anastomotic leak. Result. Seven randomized controlled trials with 3375 patients were included in the meta-analysis. 1660 forming the group undergoing preoperative radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy versus 1715 patients undergoing without preoperative radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy. The meta-analyses found that pR(C)T was not an independent risk factor for anastomotic leakage (OR 1.02, 95% CI 0.80-1.30; P = 0.88). Subgroups analysis was performed and the result was not altered. Conclusions. Current evidence demonstrates that pR(C)T did not increase the risk of postoperative anastomotic leak after rectal cancer resection in patients.
Identifiers
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.